Keeping an eye on the costs of a business makes good financial sense. But it stops making sense when the ‘big picture’ is sacrificed for perceived gains in the short term. It’s ‘managing with a long term view’ that makes collaboration work.
Principle in this is the ability to focus on long-term commitment and investment – and an avoidance of short-term, knee-jerk reaction to events. And once a long-term mind set is in place, it opens the way for a more open and honest relationship around problem solving rather than piece-price focus.
This is because the effects of collaboration ripple up the supply chain – the recent uncertainly over Brexit illustrates this. The lack of clarity over what was going to happen meant that investment slowed and businesses ‘hunkered down’ and stifled growth.
In the supply chain, having certainly of supply into a market enables all players to make decisions that reduce cost and risk and improve performance and availability, and the more of the significant players that adopt collaborative approaches the bigger these effects are on the whole market.
An example of this is the collaborative approach between Unipart Rail and Siemens. In 2013, Unipart Rail gained BS 11000 accreditation – a first in the rail market. Unipart Rail then worked with Siemens to achieve their own accreditation, and then converted this in January 2019 to the new BS 44001.
The continued integration of the businesses’ operations means that we have been able to implement new and innovative services that enhance their operations. Such as:
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Controlled Inventories held specifically for Siemens
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11 Remote Depots managed by a dedicated project manager
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Remote Warehouse Stores solution with digital inventory controls
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Project Possession support – Key materials
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Material Planning Function with JIT deliveries
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Dual project meetings with Siemens and NR
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Consumables product service
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Implementation of a digital portal providing real time delivery information
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Management reporting across projects
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Bespoke kitting of defined assets
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Dorman Signals designed to specific scheme plans
All of these make the work of Siemens smoother in delivering projects – optimising costs, reducing risk and improving performance.
Find out more on: https://www.unipartrail.com/supply-chain-solutions.html
Contact us for more information: enquiries@unipartrail.com
Adding Value through Reduced Risk, Improved Performance and Optimised Cost